Former Saints DE Will Smith Shot and Killed in New Orleans

[26CornerBlitz]

@AroundTheNFL

Man accused of killing Will Smith indicted on murder charge

https://t.co/z3uvV1ZD1V

[boyst]

thus the saying you can indict a ham sandwich.

[DC Tom]

thus the saying you can indict a ham sandwich.

 

There's a simple solution to that: ban ham sandwiches.

[26CornerBlitz]

@AroundTheNFL

Wife of Will Smith accepts MBA on behalf of her late husband

https://t.co/vwrRHDeQaw

[Hapless Bills Fan]

Wow. Scary and sad. i cant believe what people will kill some one over. I hope someone asks this 30 year old if he is glad he had a gun with him. He takes someone's life and also throws his away in the heat of the moment . Ridiculous and pointless , tragic.

 

And all too common in N'Orleans, the murder capitol of the US of A, where packing and reacting are part of the culture for some folks: "With a murder rate of 57.6 per 100,000, New Orleans had the highest murder rate of any U.S. city with a population of 100,000 or more in 2011 and ranked 28th in the world in 2014"

[3rdand12]

I was reading on a local news feed after this incident. I was amazed at how many homicides were in the news over a period of a couple weeks.

Rough town.

Edited May 7, 2016 by 3rdand12

[Hapless Bills Fan]

I was reading on a local news feed after this incident. I was amazed at how many homicides were in the news over a period of a couple weeks.

Rough town.

 

St Louis is nationally known as a town with a high murder rate. We run about 25% of New Orleans.

 

Wish someone who lives there would weigh in, heard a radio show interviewing the owner of a custom t-shirt business. Apparently New Orleans or parts of it anyway, has this tradition of "RIP Shirts" where family and friends order tshirts memorializing the deceased. Business owner said he wanted to do t-shirts for birthdays and graduations, but quickly learned he had to do RIP shirts to make money.

[NoSaint]

 

St Louis is nationally known as a town with a high murder rate. We run about 25% of New Orleans.

 

Wish someone who lives there would weigh in, heard a radio show interviewing the owner of a custom t-shirt business. Apparently New Orleans or parts of it anyway, has this tradition of "RIP Shirts" where family and friends order tshirts memorializing the deceased. Business owner said he wanted to do t-shirts for birthdays and graduations, but quickly learned he had to do RIP shirts to make money.

A few of us have commented on the topic before.... The bad areas are BAD but the good are generally fine. Where this incident took place is generally pretty good. They did set up a bunch of low income housing not far from it so the stats on the area might be mixed but I know plenty of people that walk this exact block at all hours of the day/night.

 

The biggest worry id point to is how thin the police force is (like 25% low even if you count people on medical leave and such as active- I've not been able to find a true number, but I'd guess closer to 35-40% below standard staffing)

Edited May 8, 2016 by NoSaint

[ExWNYer]

 

There's a simple solution to that: ban ham sandwiches.

 

Where were you and your bright ideas when Mama Cass was still around?!

[boyst]

St Louis is nationally known as a town with a high murder rate. We run about 25% of New Orleans.

 

Wish someone who lives there would weigh in, heard a radio show interviewing the owner of a custom t-shirt business. Apparently New Orleans or parts of it anyway, has this tradition of "RIP Shirts" where family and friends order tshirts memorializing the deceased. Business owner said he wanted to do t-shirts for birthdays and graduations, but quickly learned he had to do RIP shirts to make money.

they are big in many towns. I've seen them in my area. The best is rednecks here don't go with t shirts here, they go with car/truck decals

[Kirby Jackson]

A few of us have commented on the topic before.... The bad areas are BAD but the good are generally fine. Where this incident took place is generally pretty good. They did set up a bunch of low income housing not far from it so the stats on the area might be mixed but I know plenty of people that walk this exact block at all hours of the day/night.

 

The biggest worry id point to is how thin the police force is (like 25% low even if you count people on medical leave and such as active- I've not been able to find a true number, but I'd guess closer to 35-40% below standard staffing)

I have a good friend that is a DEA agent in NOLA and just bought a house. He refused to even look in Orleans Parish because he knows how long the response time is if an incident were to arise. Here is a gambit article that talks about the police staffing: http://m.bestofneworleans.com/gambit/is-new-orleans-crime-out-of-control/Content?oid=2789941

 

The area where the murder was is generally an area of young professionals. I lived about 2 blocks from there for 4 years. It is a nice area but not far from a rougher part of town. That is one of the main differences between New Orleans and just about every other city. Cities have bad neighborhoods, while NOLA has bad blocks. It is much less secluded than everywhere else.

 

I know that this isn't really the place for this but if you are curious on more background into the Smith murder, it seems appropriate.

[Nanker]

 

There's a simple solution to that: ban ham sandwiches.

 

 

 

Where were you and your bright ideas when Mama Cass was still around?!

Hey. If ham sandwiches are banned, only criminals will have ham sandwiches.

[3rdand12]

 

 

Hey. If ham sandwiches are banned, only criminals will have ham sandwiches.

I like ham sandwiches.

I have a good friend that is a DEA agent in NOLA and just bought a house. He refused to even look in Orleans Parish because he knows how long the response time is if an incident were to arise. Here is a gambit article that talks about the police staffing: http://m.bestofneworleans.com/gambit/is-new-orleans-crime-out-of-control/Content?oid=2789941

 

The area where the murder was is generally an area of young professionals. I lived about 2 blocks from there for 4 years. It is a nice area but not far from a rougher part of town. That is one of the main differences between New Orleans and just about every other city. Cities have bad neighborhoods, while NOLA has bad blocks. It is much less secluded than everywhere else.

 

I know that this isn't really the place for this but if you are curious on more background into the Smith murder, it seems appropriate.

Thanks to you and No Saint. I think it is perfectly fine to talk about this.

Because the Police response/ method, might come into play at some point in this case

[NoSaint]

I have a good friend that is a DEA agent in NOLA and just bought a house. He refused to even look in Orleans Parish because he knows how long the response time is if an incident were to arise. Here is a gambit article that talks about the police staffing: http://m.bestofneworleans.com/gambit/is-new-orleans-crime-out-of-control/Content?oid=2789941

 

The area where the murder was is generally an area of young professionals. I lived about 2 blocks from there for 4 years. It is a nice area but not far from a rougher part of town. That is one of the main differences between New Orleans and just about every other city. Cities have bad neighborhoods, while NOLA has bad blocks. It is much less secluded than everywhere else.

 

I know that this isn't really the place for this but if you are curious on more background into the Smith murder, it seems appropriate.

Yea I've followed the staffing and response time stuff pretty closely. The latest I saw (admittedly been a few months) was the metro area needs 1600 active officers to beconsidered adequately staffed based on population and land area. The latest city count put us a shade under 1200 but allegedly, according to the police union, included officers deployed in the military, on medical leave, maternity leave, on suspension....

 

Nola is definitely more patchwork quilt than most cities with regards to safety but the are large areas (anywhere someone on this board thinking about visiting would be in) that are quite safe as far as city living goes. What gets really tricky is, as you note, for locals housing is weird. Especially through the middle class. You see 400k houses on blocks with blighted homes and dudes hanging out on the corner. You really have to know what your doing to go about day to day life here

Edited May 8, 2016 by NoSaint

[boyst]

Yea I've followed the staffing and response time stuff pretty closely. The latest I saw (admittedly been a few months) was the metro area needs 1600 active officers to beconsidered adequately staffed based on population and land area. The latest city count put us a shade under 1200 but allegedly, according to the police union, included officers deployed in the military, on medical leave, maternity leave, on suspension....

 

Nola is definitely more patchwork quilt than most cities with regards to safety but the are large areas (anywhere someone on this board thinking about visiting would be in) that are quite safe as far as city living goes. What gets really tricky is, as you note, for locals housing is weird. Especially through the middle class. You see 400k houses on blocks with blighted homes and dudes hanging out on the corner. You really have to know what your doing to go about day to day life here

without getting, well... it's going to be hard... but what has caused this? not just you, but others?

 

i know its political, but how did the population of nola allow this? corruption that bad?

 

its sounding as bad as detroit.

[KellyToTasker]

I recently moved to the New Orleans area. By not having the experience of a true and seasoned citizen of New Orleans, I opted to commute a long distance. Between the crime rates and school systems (you need to get into a charter school or pay for private to receive an adequate education), living outside of the city made sense for my family.

 

I have friends that love living in the city and wouldn't have it any other way (with or without kids). It just depends on what's right for you. The city offers much (food, culture, etc.). People are proud of where they're from. You just need to know where to go and stay on the beaten path.

[Kirby Jackson]

I recently moved to the New Orleans area. By not having the experience of a true and seasoned citizen of New Orleans, I opted to commute a long distance. Between the crime rates and school systems (you need to get into a charter school or pay for private to receive an adequate education), living outside of the city made sense for my family.

 

I have friends that love living in the city and wouldn't have it any other way (with or without kids). It just depends on what's right for you. The city offers much (food, culture, etc.). People are proud of where they're from. You just need to know where to go and stay on the beaten path.

Where do you live? You need to join us at Ugly Dog for the games.

[KellyToTasker]

Where do you live? You need to join us at Ugly Dog for the games.

I'd be up for that! Mandeville.

[NoSaint]

without getting, well... it's going to be hard... but what has caused this? not just you, but others?

 

i know its political, but how did the population of nola allow this? corruption that bad?

 

its sounding as bad as detroit.

I'll shoot you a pm with some thoughts - it's an interesting subject. It'll probably end up a bit jumbled as its a really layered topic. New Orleans has always had a weird setup structurally- which gives a lot of the charm but also troubles. It was already a complicated city and culture and then you layer in Katrina, and now things like the influx of out of state money/expectations. I know I'm guilty of being interested due to my proximity but genuinely I think it's a really interesting topic.

[NoSaint]

some fresh info in the pipeline today --- hearings in progress with police testifying right now.

https://twitter.com/chickforetis probably the best live updates.

 

earlier this week smiths tox screen came back putting him 3 times the legal limit, which probably confirms why he initially took off from the first accident.